A Pastor Helps a 9-Year-Old Girl Discover the Truth About Santa… and She Brilliantly Takes It a Step Further

Cristina Ramos-Payne didn’t like what happened at her daughter’s religious education class this past weekend.

The night before, the pastor at her church spoke about how, as a child, he discovered his parents putting Christmas presents under their tree…

One student from [daughter] Sierra’s class suddenly realized that his parents must be leaving presents and cried that night about the loss of Santa. He told this to the religious ed. teacher. The teacher then took it upon himself to explain that Santa is not real. Then he took it a step further and told them that the Easter Bunny and the tooth fairy were not real either.

… since when did pastors start telling the truth?

Anyway, nine-year-old Sierra made an even more astonishing connection and put it in her own words perfectly (emphases hers):

… does a teacher have to start acting like they’re his children and say Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and The Tooth Fairy is not real? That they’re just your parents faking them? When he said that yesterday I connected it to saints and thought, “Well, with Santa, then you’re basically saying that St. Nickolas is not real, which makes it sound like you shouldn’t believe in even the Lord!” It’s putting to muerte a child’s dreams, beliefs, and faith.. Making them feel like “Well, then why believe in anything!” And that’s just sad.

This is one intelligent girl.

Sierra, as devastating as this news might be to you right now, it won’t put a stop to your dreams at all. In fact, you now have more options. Believe it or not, some careers revolve around discovering the truth about how the world works. For your first task, I encourage you to find out other lies adults tell children! (Hint: Mommy and Daddy aren’t really taking a “nap”…)

Will discovering the truth about Santa and God throw a wrench in your beliefs and your faith? Well, I can only hope… but you’re better off without them, anyway.

You’re smart and you’ll find a way to live a happy, ethical life without God in your life.

(Thanks to April for the link!)

Alan

This may sound weird, but last Christmas I was talking to my sister-in-law about my oldest nephew. She said that he still believed in Santa, but was a little skeptical about it. I didn’t say anything (she’s quite religious) but in my mind I was thinking “good, he’s a thinker!”
Pete084

I simply can’t believe the hypocracy of that pastor and RE teacher, spoiling a childhood and still clinging to their fairytale of gods!

And they wonder why we laugh at them.
M Vanroy

WHAT?!? Mommy and daddy weren’t napping? GROSS!!!
Rod Chlebek

muerte: death 😉
Trace

“I connected it to saints” Funny, my son connected it to angels.
Anonymous

Look, Hemant, I love you like a brother, but knock it the heck off. This Mommy and Daddy really need their “nap time”.
Anonymous

No tooth fairy?
Anonymous

I’d just like to point out that when my wife and I tell our kids we’re going to go take a nap on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, that’s EXACTLY what we’re doing.
Anonymous

They were wrestling
The Godless Monster

When my daughter (who is now 22) asked me at the age of 8 whether or not there was a Tooth Fairy, I responded with, “What do you think? Does it make sense to you?”
Her response was, “No”.
I came back with “Well, there you go.”
She states that from that point forward she was an atheist.
billybobbibb

This story is funny and cute, and relevant to me because the loss of Santa was my gateway to atheism, at 7 years old. I was a bit of a math whiz, so I figured out about how many houses Santa had to visit each second to accomplish his task, and when I asked my mom if the number I came up with was right, that’s when she finally conceded there was no Santa. And then my skepticism was rewarded…you mean Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy aren’t real, I asked. My mom admitted they weren’t real either. Then I took it the next logical step, what about God? My mom then tried to explain to me the difference between agnosticism and atheism, and that was the day I decided I was an atheist.
Anonymous

I was going to point out the same thing. LOL And they better keep the noise levels down, or there’s going to be trouble!
Gus Snarp

If my kids were old enough to be left on their own while I took a nap, that is exactly what I would be doing too!
Anonymous

Santa is excellent preparation for losing religion. It encourages children to be sceptical and shows them that authority figures are often deceitful or misinformed themselves.
Stever

I’m pretty sure mommy wrote this to say how awful the teacher is for reinforcing the kid’s skeptical minds. Oh, shame on that teacher! Teaching children how to think!?! The next thing you know they’ll be questioning the existence of “the Lord!” Oh mercy! “Why believe in anything?” You might as well be one of those dirty atheists!
Rich Wilson

Listening to a classic rock station on the radio taking my son to preschool, and they were trading office party stories. One included the phrase ‘full on banging’. ‘Banging’ caught his ear.

You’ve heard about that new dance, right? The ‘Full on Bang’?
Anonymous

I prefer to keep my faith in Santa. He is cheerful, and leaves presents, and he doesn’t threaten us with torture if we don’t worship him the right way. Not only is he a much nicer personage, but there is proof he exists. We see him in all sorts of movies, and we can see his magic sleigh in parades (though the FAA won’t let him fly it at such a low altitude, so it has to be trucked), and we can see, touch, and talk to him in stores and malls.
In our family he is the Spirit of Giving Anonymously, with the added bonus of guilt and gratitude-free getting.
Suze

No Easter Bunny, either? Dammit all to hell.